German Unemployment Nears Three Million Mark

Unemployment in Germany rose to its highest level since April 2011 on a seasonally adjusted basis in November, according to new figures.

The Nuremberg-based Federal Labour Agency reported the number of people out of work in the country increased by 10,000 to 2.985 million.

But the data revealed the jobless rate of 6.9% stayed close to its lowest since Germany, Europe's biggest economy, reunified more than two decades ago.

Coalition Deal

The figures follow the news that Germany's two main political parties have agreed the terms of a "grand coalition" deal that gives the green light to Chancellor Angela Merkel being sworn in for a third term.

Merkel's conservative union bloc, including the Christian Democrats (CDU) and its Bavarian sister CSU, struck an agreement with the centre-left Social Democrats (SPD) after two months of negotiations.